stringer bell

Aaron Hicks is just about ready to be medically cleared to return to Minnesota. Clete Thomas has returned to the big leagues and been a functional outfielder and held his own as a leadoff hitter. I think he has outplayed Wilken Ramirez and has staked a claim as a fourth outfielder if the Twins want a serviceable center fielder as their extra guy. Also, Mike Pelfrey is ready to rehab and could be back in Minnesota in a week. The Twins probably will have to make some transactions in the coming week. Here are some scenarios (not allowing for a new injury or trade). 1. Although Hicks is healthy, the Twins will option Hicks to Rochester. Three weeks (outside of injury rehab) would give the Twins another season of control over the rookie center fielder. 2. The Twins could activate Hicks and DFA Thomas. They would risk losing Thomas and then create a spot on the 40-man roster. 3. The Twins could demote another position player and activate Hicks. Possible candidates would be Parmelee and perhaps Escobar. 4. A pitcher could be demoted. Walters could be designated and since a starter wouldn't need to be recalled for a few days, Hicks could be activated immediately. At the point where Walters turn would come, someone (Albers, Vanimal?) could be recalled to start then and someone would have to be demoted then. 5. Someone in the bullpen could be demoted. The Twins have eight guys in the 'pen and probably could survive with seven. Fien and Thielbar have options. 6. Pelfrey could come back to the active roster soon. The Twins web site says he will rehab on Monday and it assumed that if all goes well he will be activated and pitch for the Twins on the Saturday before the All-Star break.

Coming into the season, I was looking at Plouffe hitting .250-.270 with about an .800 OPS, with probably 20+ homers. I expected improved defense, but still not much more than "serviceable". Nearing the halfway point of the season, Plouffe hasn't produced the power I expected, but he's hitting for a better average and keeping the OPS pretty close to .800 (.783 according to ESPN). Eye test view of his defense is improved and serviceable. For the second half of the season, I would expect that Plouffe will hit more homers and continue to improve as a third baseman. He's just 27 and I think he'll be part of the solution for the Twins when they are contenders again, not necessarily as a third baseman. It could also be that Trevor could be trade bait as soon as this deadline.

Heart of the order for baseball pitcher KG to be eligible for a win.

Dozier's OPS in day games is .772, at home it is .818. He also has a big right/left split.

KC really looks like they are swinging the bats well right now, but Gibson kept them off the board in the fourth.

But check the splits of Dozier in day games at home. He's pretty good then.

Gibson: I am sure we'll hear "downward plane" a lot. To me that fastball looks really straight, but his history is a lot of ground balls. I thought strike three to Butler was a great pitch.

Random thought: Speed doesn't equal range. See Dyson, Jarrod.

Regarding Colabello, he joined the organization with about a 1% chance of ever appearing in a major league game. He played in the independent Can-Am league for seven years and then signed with the Twins. He needed to dominate the EL as a 28-year old (check) and then move up and dominate the IL at age 29 (check). Something seemed to click for him in 2011, when he went from a good independent league player to the dominant Can-Am individual. He has already defied the odds to get a "cup of coffee", so maybe he can continue the trend at the top level. Certainly, Colabello won't get hundreds of plate appearances to prove himself, but give him a couple hundred this summer and in September to see if perhaps he can be a bench bat or maybe a platoon guy.

Florimon was viewed as a stopgap and expectations for him were pretty low. He's probably met expectations, but that certainly doesn't even guarantee that he will last the year. The best prospect at shortstop in the upper minors is Danny Santana. He made the Eastern League All-Star team, but he has committed 22 errors and while he's hitting .291, his OPS is only .683. Santana might be a better 2B than SS, but it looks like the Twins are giving him an opportunity to show he can handle the position. Niko Goodrum, at Cedar Rapids, is also a league All-Star, but CR is a long way from the majors. The shortstops in Ft. Myers have prospect resumes, but haven't stood out IMHO. James Beresford, recently promoted to Rochester profiles as a light-hitting defense first utility guy. I would say that there are not any top SS prospects anywhere near ready in the system. If the Twins trade a veteran, they would be advised to get a prospect at shortstop.

While OPS is a simple and reliable measure of hitting, Buxton could be an asset with a .700 OPS while Sano probably needs to go .800 to be a positive. That, to me, is why Buxton is the superior prospect.

Cuddyer now has a club record 24-game hitting streak. He is hitting .351 (second in the NL) and has a .999 OPS, also second in the NL. Despite injuries that cost him 20 games, it looks like he has earned an All-Star berth at 34 years of age. I will keep cheering for this guy until he retires and I hope he makes it back to the Twins organization after that.

They go 5-3 at home and 3-7 on the road. That is an 8-10 slate. KC and NY are the weakest offenses (both have pitched well), so I expect the Twins to be competitive against them, but scoring runs will be tough.

I do. Beside saving money, the Twins would then have a chance to see if Colabello and Parmelee can be contributors along with Josmil Pinto.

I've been to a few minor league parks--Jet Blue, Hammond Stadium, Veteran's Memorial (Perfect Game Field) and whatever the stadium is called at Port Charlotte. They all offer something. Jet Blue is as close as I've been to being in Fenway and we sat in the "Monster Seats", so it was interesting. The only park I wouldn't go back to was the one in Port Charlotte (Rays FSL farm team) and that had more to do with handicapped accessability than anything else.

1. Target Field--I haven't had much luck seeing winners, but it is very good and customer friendly. I like the view at night. 2. Safeco--Saw a game there with the roof open and it was beautiful. Seems much larger than the capacity and the dimensions. 3. Coors Field--Saw a game there in 100 degree heat (it was a dry heat) and thought it was very nice. 4. Kauffman Stadium--The last of the "old" stadiums. It is so much better with real grass. I like the fountains. 5. Metropolitan Stadium--An overgrown minor league park, but baseball was new and fun then. I saw a couple of Harmon homers. 6. Metrodome--A lousy stadium unless the team is good. When the Twins were winning, you forgot all of the drawbacks, especially when it was raining or cold outside.

I think this year is a year of change from "do little" and "do nothing". The plan is much more obvious--the guys on the block won't be here when the Twins are good again and there will be demand for a couple of them.

Lost me on this one!

The Eastern League named it's All-Stars today. Here are the All-Stars from the Twins affiliate at New Britain: Josmil Pinto C Danny Santana SS Daniel Ortiz OF AJ Achter P Trevor May P Congratulations to all five Rock Cat All-Stars.

Scott Diamond was easily the best pitcher for the Twins last year. His numbers were good, but his peripherals indicated that he was a candidate for regression. Diamond has certainly regressed this year--big time. The things that helped him to be successful last year--extreme strike throwing, high ground ball rate--just haven't been as good this year. Diamond has been victimized by big innings in the middle of games and hasn't seemed to make the adjustments to minimize the damage. Some of this may be bad luck, evening up for the good luck Diamond experienced last year. It also might be health. Diamond had surgery late in the off-season and started on the DL. Finally, it may be that Diamond has lost confidence and having confidence when the margin for error is small is pretty important. I am a fan of Diamond. I think he does the best he can with his abilities and he is a better pitcher than he has shown so far this year. I think that Diamond can be a functional member of a good rotation. The question now is what the team can do to help Diamond be a better pitcher. I jokingly said that I would be starting a thread to demote Diamond, but perhaps a short trip to the minors would be what is best for him right now. The Twins future looks good in the field. On the mound, there aren't many certainties except that most of the current staff won't be around when the club contends again. I think Diamond is one of the pitchers who could be part of the Twins when they are good again. What is best for him right now?

My last break, the Twins scored three to jump out, now the Marlins score three to knot it. Time to start a "Demote Diamond" thread.

Break time! I can catch 15 minutes of the game...on the computer.

Now a big fly from one of the next three guys and .....well Diamond is pitching, so I guess the Twins will have a chance.

Crooked number in the first?

Thomas walks. I'm sure Dick wants Dozier to bunt him over.